Dining-In: A Culinary Tour of America-De Smet, South Dakota

The Location: De Smet, South Dakota

The picture isn't much to look at, I'll admit, but I picked this town for a reason. A very good one, to me, at least. This town is on my "bucket list" of places to see. If you don't know off the top of your head why, I'll explain...

As of the 2010 census, the population of De Smet was 1,089 people. 98.8% of them are white, and 0.6% are Native American. The unemployment rate is 1.1%, with an average income of $26,042.

Dakota was made a territory in 1868. It is the subject of a song featured in the 1960's Disney movie, The One and Only Original Family Band. If you haven't seen this movie before, you should. It's fun. Watch it around Election Day...

This song was actually in the running to be named the official state song for South Dakota. It's quite lovely, I think. 

De Smet was "platted", the step prior to incorporation, in 1880. It was named after Father Pierre De Smet, a Jesuit missionary who worked with Native Americans during his career. The first train came through the town in 1880.

You're probably saying to yourself, wow, there's really not much to this town, why ever did you choose it? Well...now we come to the reason I chose it. Those of you familiar with the works may already know the name, but in case you are not, I will tell you. De Smet was the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder. She came with her family in 1879 at the age of 12 and would end up living there for the rest of her life. Three of her books: The Long Winter, Little Town on the Prairie, and These Happy Golden Years, all take place in De Smet. And a fourth book, By the Shores of Silver Lake, takes place nearby. Laura met and married her husband Almanzo Wilder there, and her daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, a famous writer and journalist in her own right, was born and raised there. The town has many tourist attractions you can visit, including the farms and houses they lived in. I have always wanted to visit this town because I am a life-long fan of the Little House books, and the tv show. Some day I will visit here.

The Food: Sour Cream Peach Kuchen

Kuchen is the official state food of South Dakota, and for good reason. It's quite fantastic. It's also because there are a lot of German immigrants to the state and this is a German dessert. One of the best gifts immigrants to our country bring to us, is their food. That is one thing I am learning more and more with each week of this project. Some people might feel threatened by immigrants, but I think we can all agree that we all eat better by having them here.

This dish is dedicated to my co-worker Tanya, who recommended I look into it. I'm glad I did because it is amazing! It turns out I have several recipes in my collection, but I've never made any of them before. They all had ingredients that were out of season, but one of them had an economical alternative, so I chose that one. Peaches are not in season yet, and frozen cost so much money for the amount I needed that I turned to canned peaches. Yes, I used peaches from a can, and I lived to tell the tale. I try to avoid corn syrup as much as possible, so the idea of using peaches that are soaking in it was gross to me, but I rinsed them off very carefully and I think it kept the corn syrup to a minimum. The recipe is from the Taste of Home magazine, February/March 2001 edition. I will write it out as it was originally written, but add my own changes to it in parenthesis.

Sour Cream Peach Kuchen

Ingredients:

3 cups flour
1 1/4 cups sugar, divided (I used 1/4 cup sugar and 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce instead)
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup cold butter
2 cans (29 oz. each) sliced peaches, drained or 13 small fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
1 tsp. cinnamon
Topping:
4 egg yolks
2 cups (16oz) sour cream
2-3 Tbsp. sugar (I used 1 Tbsp.)
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

In a bowl, combine the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press into the bottom and one inch up the sides of a greased 13"x9"x2" baking dish.

Arrange peaches over crust. Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar(This is where I used the applesauce); sprinkle over peaches. (I mixed them in a bowl with the applesauce and cinnamon to make sure it was all very well combined and then poured them over the crust.) Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine egg yolks and sour cream. Spread evenly over the peaches. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the top.

Bake 30-35 minutes longer or until golden. Serve warm or cold. Store leftovers in the refrigerator. Yield: 12 servings

This was good warm last night but it was even better this morning cold. The crust is basically a shortbread. When you make it you will think you're doing something wrong because you're adding no liquid to it. But this isn't a pastry, so resist that instinct to add liquid and stick to the recipe. The peaches will add some moisture to it and the butter will melt into it to hold it all together. The sour cream/egg yolk topping is new to me but quite a revelation. It has a cheesecake quality to it but without using cream cheese. This is a wonderful surprise to somebody who is lactose intolerant. I can eat certain brands of sour cream without issue, but cream cheese I can only eat one particular brand that is very expensive, which means that cheesecake is no longer possible for me. This was a very fun treat.

This was the first time I have made something that turned out exactly as the picture looked. I was excited to see that it was just like it should be. I have at least two other kuchen recipes and I might have to try them out this summer when stone fruits are in season.

I would say this recipe was pretty easy to make. Somebody who doesn't have a lot of baking experience will be able to make it without much trouble. I would recommend everybody try this sometime. You won't regret it! The most dangerous part of it all, though, is that I am off work this week so I have nobody to eat all the leftovers except myself...And let's be honest, I'm probably going to eat it all!

Sources:

Map

City Pic

Economic Info

City Info

Kuchen Info

Dining-In: A Culinary Tour of America-Hood River, Oregon

The Location: Hood River, Oregon

Hood River is located at the base of the Columbia River, near Mt. Hood. It is about sixty miles east of Portland. As of the 2010 census, there were 7,167 people living there. About 62.9% are white, and 24.4% are Hispanic or Latino. As of the 2000 census, the per capita income is $17,609 and 17.3% live below the poverty line.

The area is known for its fruit production, specifically cherries, apples, and pears. There are several orchards and wineries set up in a large circular pattern that one can visit on the famous "Fruit Loop". Agriculture, recreational sports, and tourism have always been the three largest industries in the area, but the 1990's brought to the region several high-tech companies that helped boost the economy even more. Interesting foodie factoid: The company that makes the Tofurky, is located here.

Hood River was incorporated in 1895, but the area was settled much earlier than that. In 1805, the Hood River, the actual river, not the town, was named Labeasche River by the famed explorers, Lewis and Clark. Over time, though, the river came to be known as Dog River, named after the meat that many settlers were forced to eat in order to survive. In the end, however, it was a pioneer named Mary Coe, whose family would be one of the first to plant apple trees in the region, who managed to get the named changed to the more pleasant-sounding Hood River, named after the mountain that is its ultimate source of water.

Up until 1920, the region was known for its apple orchards, but in 1919, many of the trees were killed due to a freeze. Pear trees were planted in their place and now the region is known for that. Specifically the D'Anjou/Anjou pear. In fact, it is one of the world's largest producers of this particular species of pear.

The Food: D'Anjou Pears

I actually did not know until I researched the area that it was specifically D'Anjou pears that Hood River is known for. I knew pears, but not which kind. So, when I went to the store yesterday with the intent of buying Bartlett pears, but came away with a bag full of D'Anjou pears, it was a happy coincidence for me! Really though, it boiled down to money. Bartletts were $1.99/lb but D'Anjous were on sale for $0.99/lb. D'Anjous tent to be harder than Bartletts but one of them was rather soft and none of them were rock hard, which was good. Since they were all being cooked first, it was less important for them to be very soft. The flavor is very similar to a Bartlett, and it also has that pear "grit" mouth feel when you eat one. I chose a savory and a sweet application for them and was quite pleased with how they turned out. I found recipes from my recipe card collection, so I will write them out here, and put in any changes I made, as well as any notes.

Chicken in Pear Sauce:(Yes, I really made a pear sauce on purpose. This is a note for any of my family members who might have been around for the now infamous "pear gravy" incident at Thanksgiving many years ago...) This recipe comes from the Taste of Home magazine, August/September 2000 edition.

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
5 thick-cut bacon strips, diced (I find it much easier to dice bacon when it is almost completely frozen. It makes it less of a greasy mess to deal with. I highly recommend putting your bacon in the freezer until it's almost frozen before dicing it up.)
1 can(14.5oz) chicken broth
2-3 medium ripe pears, peeled, cored, and diced
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. cold water
1 Tbsp. dried chives(that's what I had on-hand, the recipe calls for 1/4 cup snipped fresh chives, if you have those on-hand)

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. In a skillet over medium heat, cook chicken in oil on both sides for about 10 minutes or until juices run clear. Meanwhile, in another small saute pan, cook bacon until crisp. Drain, reserving 1 Tbsp. drippings, set bacon aside.

When the chicken is mostly cooked, remove from the pan to a plate and cover with foil. Add the reserved bacon drippings to the pan and gradually stir the chicken broth in as well. Bring to a boil and stir well to loosen anything on the bottom of the pan.(This is called "deglazing", fyi...) After about 5 minutes, add the pears, and bring to a boil again. Boil, uncovered, about 5 minutes, or until the pears have softened. Combine the cornstarch and cold water, and add to the pan, whisking immediately into the liquid to keep it from gelling. Stir in the bacon bits and the chives until everything has heated through. Add the chicken back to the pan to coat on all sides.

Makes 4 servings.

This was something I was worried about. How would pear, bacon, and chicken taste together? It turns out that the answer is: Delicious. Pear isn't too far off from apple, flavor-wise, and apple and bacon is a natural combo. The chicken also had an almost smoky quality from the cooking process which blended well with the other flavors. I made steamed red potatoes and green beans for the sides. They taste good on their own but don't lend too much of a strong contrast to the other flavors. They allow the sauce and chicken to play the central flavor role in the meal. This was really good and I'd definitely make it again.

Harvest Pear Crisp with Candied Ginger (Source unknown)

 

Ingredients:

Topping: 

1/2 cup flour

1 Tbsp. brown sugar(it calls for 1/4 cup but I cut it down to a quarter of that.)

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup chilled butter, but into 1/2" cubes(I actually used softened butter and it turned out fine)

1 cup old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup coarsely chopped whole raw hazelnuts(it calls for almonds, but I switched them out for hazelnuts because that is another Oregon specialty food)

1/4 cup crystallized ginger, minced

Filling:

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

4 lb.(6-7) ripe pears, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2" cubes

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

Topping: Whisk first four ingredients in a medium bowl. Add butter. Thoroughly incorporate butter into the flour mixture. It will resemble cookie dough. Stir in oats, nuts, and ginger. Mix until well combined. Chill while preparing the filling. Can be made one day ahead. (I actually did the filling first and then the topping and didn't chill it at all. It still turned out just fine.)

Filling: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk first three ingredients in the bottom of a 13"x 9" oval baking dish(You can use whatever shape you have, I just happen to have the oval one it called for). Add pears; toss. Pour the applesauce over this and mix well until all the pears are coated.(I replaced the sugar in the recipe with the applesauce. Also, apples are an Oregon ingredient, so it makes it even more appropriate to use!) Sprinkle the topping over the pear mixture. Bake until topping is crisp and golden grown, and juice is bubbling, about 50 minutes. Serve warm.

Makes 8-10 servings

I was really impressed with how this turned out. Granted, my palate is adjusted to enjoy less sweet things, so to others, this might taste bland. To me, it was very peary and sweet. Because there isn't the sugar called for in the recipe, it might not have been as juicy as it was supposed to be. Sugar tends to draw moisture out of fruit, but I still think it was really good. The topping was crunchy and flavorful. The crystallized ginger adds more sugar to the recipe, so you don't need as much sugar as it calls for, I think. It was really amazing. This could easily be served with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, but I ate it just like that. Some people don't enjoy cooked fruit, but I think it's worth trying.

The D'Anjou pears turned out to be the better choice, in the end. If I'd used Bartletts, I think those would have broken down too much during the cooking and baking process and been way too mushy. I made a half batch for both the recipes I tried and they worked just fine. I would definitely make both of these again some time.

This meal made me want to go down to visit Portland again, and make a special trip over to Hood River to see the orchards in person. I might just have to do that one of these days...

Sources:

City map

City pic

Hood River History

More History

Dining-In: A Culinary Tour of America-Chicago, Illinois

 

The City: Chicago, Illinois

Christos Anesti! And then you say, Alithos Anesti! For those of you who don't know what I am saying, it means, "Christ is risen!" and "Truly He is risen!". Why am I saying this? Because it's Eastern/Greek Orthodox Easter today, of course! Today we travel to Chicago to celebrate Orthodox Easter in the third-most populous city, with the third-highest Greek American population.

As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 2,695,598. Greek Americans make up 93,624 of that total. The city is made up of about 45% white and 32.9% African Americans. The median(not average) income is $47,408/household, and 22.1% of the city's population lives below the poverty line. This is by far the largest city I have focused on so far with this project.

Chicago is a French derivation of the Miami-Illinois Native American word "shikaakwa", which means "wild onion". The city was founded on August 12, 1833, with an original population of about 200 people. Prior to the European invasion, the region was home to the Potawatomi, Ottawa, and Ojibwe peoples.

Chicago has a very long and illustrious history, far too big to delve into here, so I will keep it focused on the connection to Greek Americans. Greeks began to immigrate to the United States in 1821, mostly by people who had survived the Greek Revolution. By the 1880's and '90's, they were coming in larger numbers. In Chicago, Greeks began moving there in the 1840's. Most of them were men coming to seek their fortunes, or trying to escape being recruited into the Turkish army, a country that was occupying theirs at the time. Greek women began to come over starting in 1885, as "picture brides". A lot of these people returned to Greece, eventually, however. After the Second World War, though, even more came to the United States, as "displaced persons".

Chicago is also the settings for one of my favorite movies, one I just rewatched today: My Big Fat Greek Wedding. In the movie is a scene set during Easter. Easter is a very big deal for Greek Orthodox Christians. I was definitely reminded of this scene when deciding whether or not to feature the holiday in this blog series. Here is the scene:

The Food: Lambropsomo-Greek Easter Bread
I searched long and hard for a food to make for Greek Easter. One of the main foods eaten is lamb, but I don't eat lamb. And I didn't want to just do a side dish with something that didn't really fit it as an entree. Then I found this bread recipe online and remembered that I had a recipe card for it from forever ago and had never tried it yet. This was my chance, finally! It's pretty complicated, for a bread, but it was also a lot of fun.

The first step is to make Easter eggs. Easter eggs?? In bread? Yes! You'll see...I had some drama with the Easter eggs. They were supposed to be blood red, to represent Christ, and I tried pomegranate juice first, trying to be natural. That didn't work at all. So I had to use food coloring, but that also didn't really work and they were very pale pink, even though they'd been in the red water since early Saturday morning. Lame. But they had some color at least...Anyway, I'll write out the recipe card with the alterations I made.

Lambropsomo-Greek Easter Bread
5 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 pkg. active dry yeast
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 Tbsp. lemon zest
1/2tsp. anise extract OR 2 tsp. ground anise seed(this is what I used because I was not spending almost $5 for a bottle of extract. To make ground anise, the best way it to use an electric coffee grinder. If you don't have one already, do yourself a favor and buy a cheap one solely for grinding spices. You will not regret it.)
4 eggs
5 hard-boiled eggs, dyed scarlet
1 egg white

Combine 2 cups flour, salt, and yeast in a mixing bowl. Heat milk, butter, and applesauce to about 125 degrees.(Don't let it get too much hotter than this or it'll kill the yeast. If it's too hot, stir it and let it sit until it cools down. Use a thermometer for this step.) Pour over the dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Add zest, anise extract or seed, and eggs, one at a time. Beat well. Gradually add enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Turn out on a floured board and knead lightly. Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled in size. Punch down. Turn dough out on a floured board and knead lightly. Cut off 1/6th of the dough to use for decoration. Shape remaining dough into a large round loaf, about 10" in diameter. Place on a greased baking sheet.(I found that a pizza pan worked best.)

Place one dyed egg in the center of the dough. Lay the other four eggs around the edge, forming a cross. Roll remaining dough into pencil-thin strips. Place a cross on top of each egg with the strips, pressing the ends of the strips into the bread to secure the eggs. (I placed them with the round end in the bread and the pointy end sticking up. This seemed to be too heavy to maintain as you can see in the picture. Next time I think I'd place them on their sides. I think they'd stay in place better that way.) Cover and let rise until doubled in size. Brush with lightly beaten egg white.

Bake in a 325 degree oven for 50-55 minutes, or until the loaf sounds hollow when thumped. Serve hot or let cool on a wire rack. Makes 1 large loaf.

 They weren't kidding when they said it made one large loaf. You can see how it fills up the entire pizza pan. This shot was taken while standing on the top step of a step-stool in order to properly capture the enormity. The flavor is not unlike a traditional Pan de Muerto bread that is eaten during El Dia de Los Muertos, if you've ever had that before. The texture was perfect. I was highly impressed with this, not only the flavor and texture, but just the look of it is so cool. I wish the eggs had been redder, but the bread turned out and that's the important thing. I will taste test the eggs once they're cooled, but I suspect they will probably end up in the compost. The bread, however, will be taken to work to share with my coworkers!

Christos Anesti, Everybody!

Sources:

Map

City Pic

Chicago Greek American history

Greek American history

Greek Orthodox Easter

Dining-In: A Culinary Tour of America-Lakewood Township, New Jersey

The City: Lakewood, New Jersey
According to the 2010 census, there are 92,843 people living here. 84.3% are white, 6.35% are African American. The per capita income is $16,430, and 26.1% live below the poverty line. Why did I choose this town, you may ask. Well, because it is home to one of the largest Orthodox Jewish communities in the entire country. Jewish people make up 59% of the town's population. And this weekend is Passover!

The first European settlers to the area arrived around 1750 and turned the region into several sawmills. The early 1800's brought with it a changeover to ironworks. The town was renamed Lakewood in 1850 and used as a vacation spot for locals. Several large hotels were built to encourage visitors.

Lakewood Township houses one of the largest yeshivas in the world. A yeshiva, is a Jewish school system and can be from elementary age all the way though post graduate age. The yeshiva in Lakewood, Beth Madrash Govoha, has about 6500 students, all male, and is a university-age school.Tuition to the school is negotiable, the idea behind it being that no student should be denied their chance to study the Torah because they cannot afford to.

The Food: Matzo Ball Soup

If I had to point to one food and say, "This is it. This is Jewish cuisine," I would probably point to Matzo Ball soup. This is of course a gross generalization of a culture that spans the globe. Matzo Ball soup is not a food eaten by all sects of Jewish population, but I would say that it is the best known dish in this country. I think most non-Jewish people would probably identify that dish as the one they think of first and foremost when they think about Jewish cuisine.

I have a deep respect and love for Jewish cuisine. As a food historian, I have never run across a culture whose cuisine is so steeped in their history, or vice versa. Everything they eat seems to tell the story of who they are as a people and where they have come from. It is transportable and edible history, easily passed from one generation to the next. It is genius.

Matzo Ball soup has its roots in Germany and Poland, and the tradition traveled with immigrants to the United States, who largely settled on the East Coast, in cities like New York, and Lakewood Township. Matzo, to anybody unfamiliar with it, is a flat, wheat-based cracker with little flavoring. It is eaten largely during Passover to commemorate the emergency flight out of Egypt by the slaves. With little time to prepare, the women were unable to make proper breads with yeast and created these flat crackers instead. Each year, for the duration of the Passover celebration, Jewish people generally don't eat foods with yeast. That a soup from these crackers would become a popular dish at this time of year, isn't terribly surprising. The soup is a chicken soup base, with the matzo balls added as the main starch. Though this dish started off as a Passover dish, it has since become a year-round delicacy.

There were many recipes I could follow but I chose to only use the matzo ball recipe and create my own chicken soup. I did use some of the spices but added my own as well. I will write out my soup recipe, and link to the matzo ball recipe I used.

Matzo Ball Soup:
1 qt. container chicken broth
1 qt. water(I used the container of broth after it was emptied to get as much flavor out of it as I could)
1 large chicken breast, with skin and bones
1 onion, unpeeled, quartered
3 carrots, chopped in large chunks
3 celery stalks, chopped in large chunks
1 pinch each dried dill, dried thyme, whole black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 whole cloves

Place the chicken in a large pot and cover with the water and broth. Bring to a boil and reduce down to a simmer, turning the chicken several times to cook all the way through. During this time, there will be stuff that floats to the top of the liquid. Carefully remove this with a spoon.

When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pot and add the vegetables and herbs to the simmering liquid and continue to cook. Let the chicken rest until it's cool enough to handle and remove skin and bones before shredding the meat. Place in the fridge until ready to use.

When the vegetables are softened but not mushy, turn off the heat and strain into another pot, leaving the veggies and herbs behind. From the veggies, pick a few of the best and chop them up. This will be the vegetables for the soup. Discard the rest.

Now it's time to make the matzo balls. I read up about "floaters" and "sinkers" and decided on a floater recipe. I made my own matzo meal, instead of buying it pre-made from the store. I bought one box of crackers and crushed them up in my food processor. They break down into little bits but not powder. If you try this yourself, don't worry, it's supposed to look like that. I followed the recipe exactly except I added a pinch of thyme to it to reflect the flavors of the broth I had made.

Since the broth I had made didn't make enough to cook the mazto balls in, I used heavily salted water instead. This also helps keep any of them from breaking up and possibly clouding the broth. I cooked the matzo balls in a covered pot, and according to the comments I read from the recipe I had chosen, keeping it covered is vital. They half boil, half steam. I followed the recipe exactly as it said and when I lifted up the lid, they were definitely still floating, though the middles looked like they hadn't cooked all the way yet. I flipped them over to help finish cooking, and then they sunk. I don't know why, but they sunk. I thought they'd be like when you fry doughnuts and you flip those over, but no...they sank. I had to very carefully fish them out of the water.

At this time, I added the veggies and shredded chicken back to the broth and heated it through. I had never added any salt to this, so I flavored it at this point. It took quite a bit of salt to get it right. To serve, I put four matzo balls in the bottom of the bowl and poured the soup over it. Four ended up being too much. Three is a better amount for one serving, I think.

The broth was too carroty for my tastes, so next time I would probably use one less carrot. It was a bit too sweet for me, hence the need for so much salt to balance it out. The matzo balls taste and look probably exactly as they are supposed to. However, my palate and taste buds aren't used to them. I wasn't the hugest fan of them, I have to admit, sadly. Maybe if I had tried one made by a professional who knew what they were doing, it would be different. Or maybe if I had been raised with it as a part of my diet, it would be different. There isn't much flavor to a matzo, so it doesn't lend a lot to the finished product, but for me it was mostly the texture. I'm just not used to it. I should also mention the fact that I don't tend to have a lot of luck with chicken noodle soup, or chicken soups in general. I have no idea why, but it's one of the things that seems to elude me...And yet I keep trying!

Making the soup, regardless of the turnout, was fun. It was time consuming and very involved, but it was fun. It was nice to feel like I was participating in something that thousands of other people around the world are participating in right now. Preparing a dish that has traveled halfway around the world, and has been passed down from one generation to the next, and contains the story of who they are in it, is a joy and a privilege. And as with several other dishes I have made in this series, Matzo Ball soup has woven its way into American cuisine. It might not be my story or my history, but it is a beautiful one that is worth knowing by everybody.

Sources:


Matzo Ball Recipe

Map

Article about the Yeshiva system in Lakewood

City Pic

Matzo Ball History

More Matzo Ball History

Dining In-A Culinary Tour of America: St. Louis, Missouri

The City: St. Louis, Missouri
This stop marks two milestones for me: The first is that we are officially 1/5 of the way through the states of this country. That's pretty exciting to me! The second is that we are in a city that was featured in the most famous road trip movie in American history-National Lampoon's Vacation. The first, the original, and the best. You might recall Clark Griswold pointing out the world-famous St. Louis Arch to his family as they drove over the "Mighty Mississip" and then claim that they had no time to actually go to it. Then they got lost in the city in a hilarious, if racist sequence featuring the dangers of inner cities...If you have not seen this movie, do yourself a favor and watch it.

St. Louis was founded in 1763, and was a slave state. It has a long and complicated history, much too long to get into here, but I will focus on a few points of interest.

Prior to the European invasion, the region all along the Mississippi River was home to the Osage and numerous other tribes. They lived there for at least 700 years, during which time they created mounds of earth for various reasons. These reasons included ceremonial rites, burial mounds, and commemorative purposes. The majority of these mounds, sadly, were razed when Europeans began to settle the area and needed the space for their own needs. Several mounds still exist, however, and you are able to see them if you travel to the area.

A couple of interesting factoids about the city: It is the home to the country's first gas station, and not surprisingly, also the location of the very first car accident.

The current population, as of the 2010 census, is 319,294 people. 49.2% are African American, and 43.9% are white. This isn't the first time I have visited a city where white people are the minority, however this is the first large city I have visited where this was the case.

There is too much history to get into here, but there is one moment I would like to highlight. As a history major who focused on food and its role in history, the 1904 World's Fair marks an important time in American food history. It introduced a number of foods now considered to be standard American fare, to the nation. These foods include: hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream cones, banana splits, iced tea, Dr Pepper, cotton candy and peanut butter*. Most of these foods existed in some form in other countries or areas of the United States already, but the World's Fair popularized them across the country. Imagine our nation now if the hamburger had never been introduced. No Burger King, no McDonald's...Some of you would love that idea, I know, but it has shaped our nation's history, whether or not you like the food. Roadside restaurants began popping up around the same time as highways were being built and people began to take long car rides on vacation or to get away for a few hours. The foods at those restaurants all had their beginning at the 1904 World's Fair.

The World's Fair is also the subject of one of my favorite musicals of all-time: Meet Me in St. Louis, starring Judy Garland.

This movie introduced one of the most famous Christmas songs ever, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. Again, if you have never seen it, do yourself a favor and watch it. It's such a sweet movie.

The Food: Gerber Sandwich and Toasted Ravioli

You're probably asking why I chose these foods over the foods I've just waxed poetic about from the World's Fair. Well, the answer is simple, I've never had a Gerber Sandwich or toasted ravioli before, but I've had all the foods from the fair. I am trying to feature items that are new to me, or at least items I have never made for myself before. These are currently very popular foods that define St. Louis culture today, and for good reason--they're super delish.

I have links I will post for both recipes but as they are both so simple I will write out what I did for them here as well.

Toasted Ravioli:
-Your favorite brand of frozen ravioli, thawed(I used Rising Moon Organics brand and selected their vegan spinach and soy cheese flavor. I have eaten this brand before and highly recommend it to any vegan/vegetarians or lactose intolerant people who miss being able to eat ravioli. Be sure to look at the package carefully though, as they also have non-vegan ravioli as well.)
-Italian seasoned breadcrumbs(I used Trader Joe's brand since they have no corn syrup in theirs, and added my own Italian seasoning, as well as salt and pepper to flavor it)
-milk
-1 egg
-oil for frying
-Spaghetti sauce of choice(I used my sister's that was sitting in the fridge. Nobody tell her...)
-Parmesan cheese for sprinkling on top

Combine the milk and the egg in a small bowl, whisking until well mixed. Pour the breadcrumbs onto a plate. Dip the ravioli one by one into the milk and then place in the breadcrumbs and carefully cover both sides with the breadcrumbs. Place onto another plate and let sit for 15 minutes or so to let the breadcrumbs adhere to the pasta really well.

Using a saute pan, heat oil over medium-high heat and carefully place the ravioli in the pan. Pan-fry both sides until nicely toasted brown. Do not worry about the pasta not being cooked in water first. The heat from the frying will cook it through as well as heat the filling. When they are done, remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel for a minute. Serve them on a plate with the sauce on the side and a sprinkling of cheese on top.

This was really amazing. So simple really, but unlike any other ravioli I've ever had before. These could be used as an appetizer if you wanted, but it could also be a meal.

Gerber Sandwich:
Made famous by Ruma's Deli in the city, this open-faced sandwich feels almost like eating a French bread pizza, minus the tomato sauce. It is traditionally made with something called "provel" cheese, but I don't have access to that here, so I made an approximate substitute that was recommended, of one part white cheddar, one part Swiss, and two parts provolone. I diced all of these up and mixed it together and sprinkled it on top. Here is how I made it:
-1 small loaf of French bread(my store sells individually-sized French breads so I just used one of these) split down the middle and laid out flat
-butter
-garlic powder
-deli ham slices
-cheese, as described above

Spread both halves of the bread with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder.(None of the recipes I found specified what kind of garlic, so I went with garlic powder. I was concerned that fresh garlic might not cook through fast enough and I don't like raw garlic, though I found I didn't really taste the flavor of the powdered kind. Granulated might have worked better, though fresh probably would have cooked through so I might try that next time.)

Layer the ham slices on top of it and then top with the cheese. Place them on a sheet pan(I actually did everything on the sheet pan to start with and found it was easier that way) and cook in a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes until the cheese it melted and starting to brown on top.

This was pretty tasty, though like I said, the garlic didn't really come through. It was also really hot and the roof of my mouth is still burned the next day. I would recommend letting this sit for a while before eating it. The flavor of the cheese combination was pretty tasty, though the cheddar was drowned out by the provolone and Swiss.

Both of these recipes were really easy to make. There was nothing out of the ordinary about the actual ingredients, it's all pretty simple stuff. But putting it together in that way was so unique to me that it really stood out as a special treat. I highly recommend both of these, but if I had to choose one over the other, it would be the ravioli. They were just fantastic!

Sources:
Map

City Pic

Movie Clip

Worlds Fair Food info*List of food is a direct quote taken from here

More World's Fair info

City History

Toasted Ravioli recipe

Gerber Sandwich recipe

Provel Cheese info

Dining-In: A Culinary Tour of America-Cincinnati, Ohio

The City: Cincinnati, Ohio
This is the first big city I've explored so far on this journey and I am really happy I chose it. When I thought of this project, this was one of the first destinations I came up with and I knew exactly what I wanted to try here. I was not disappointed.

Cincinnati is Ohio's third largest city and was founded in 1788. It has approximately 332,252 people living there and as of the 2007 census, 23.5% of them live below the poverty line. It is the 10th poorest city in the nation.

The city's geographical location made it an important place during the Civil War. The city is located along the Ohio River, which shares a border with the state of Kentucky. Kentucky was a slave state, and Ohio was a non-slave state, however, a lot of people in Ohio did business with slave-owning businesses in the bordering states, so the citizens of the city supported both sides of the war. The Union Army, however used Cincinnati as a major supply base.

Cincinnati is also the location of some rather interesting firsts for American history. The first major league baseball game was played there in 1935, and it also is home to the first concrete-reinforced skyscraper that was built in 1902.

The Food:
Cincinnati/Skyline Chili

Cincinnati is known as the "Chili Capital of America"-sorry Texas. I have seen Cincinnati's chili highlighted many times on the Food Network which is where I saw it first and decided I wanted to try making it sometime. When I had to pick a place in Ohio to feature, there was no doubt in my mind that it would be Cincinnati, and I knew the food would be the chili. If you have ever heard of the term "Cincinnati Threeway," this is what they're referring to. Each "way" refers to another addition to the toppings. The chili is a meat-based sauce without beans. One of the "ways" you can have it, is with beans added. I kept mine very traditional as far as toppings go, but I did revamp the chili itself to fit my own dietary needs. I based it on one recipe I found online and tweaked it based on some of the comments that explained how the original version was. I will provide the link to the original recipe, but I will write out what I did for mine for you to read here.

Cincinnati/Skyline Chili:

Ingredients:

1/2 large onion, chopped
1 pound ground chicken
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon red (cayenne) pepper-this can be doubled if you like more heat.

1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
Toppings (see below)

In a frying pan, cook the onion, garlic, and chicken in a little bit of oil. I used canola, but vegetable or olive oil would work well too.

Mix the tomato sauce, water, and all the spices in a crock pot, and when the chicken and onion mixture is cooked, pour it into the crock pot as well. Cook on low for 3-4 hours. You can do this on the stove as well if you want, but the crock pot is the greener option for something that needs to simmer for a long time. It uses far less energy to use a crock pot than the stove top. If you do use a pot on the stove, simmer for 1.5 hours.

The toppings are traditionally as follows:

 

Two-Way Chili:   Chili served on spaghetti

Three-Way Chili:   Additionally topped with shredded Cheddar cheese
Four-Way Chili:   Additionally topped with chopped onions
Five-Way Chili:   Additionally topped with kidney beans

I did mine as the three-way. I cooked pasta, I used fettuccine because I had a box I wanted to use up, but I think any pasta would work. Elbow macaroni in particular would work really well. As with one of the comments in the link I used, it emphasized the importance of using oyster crackers over the pasta too, which I did as well. They got pretty soggy pretty quickly, but I think the next time I'll put them over the very top so they'll be crunchy for longer. I also used shredded cheddar cheese, which to me was a vital flavor component.

 

This was so good! I was concerned about the allspice and the cinnamon but it really was a great addition to the spice blend. I think it'll improve over time too, so I am really excited about the leftovers tomorrow night. I'm sorry that nobody else will get to taste-test this, but I will be keeping all the leftovers for myself! It was that good.

I would definitely make this again and I will probably double the recipe and freeze portions because I don't see why it wouldn't freeze and thaw out easily. This was a great alternative to spaghetti sauce and I cannot recommend it highly enough. It was super easy to make. Almost embarrassingly easy.

Sources:
Map

City Pic

Census Info

Cincinnati Chili recipe

All historical info came from Wikipedia

Dining In-A Culinary Tour of America: Celebration, Florida

Location: Celebration, Florida

This city is a relatively young city, and has an interesting background. It was developed in the mid 1990's by Disney's real estate division. The city's architecture has a distinct Disney touch to it. To a Disney fan, this city might be heaven on earth, but if you're not a Disney fan, it might be a bit much for you...It's proximity to Disney World is also beneficial to Disney fans. I am a Disney fan and if I could handle the heat and humidity, I would seriously consider living here one day. It would be like living in Downtown Disney and who wouldn't want that! The company continues to do much of their office-related work for the park in Celebration.

As of the 2010 census, there are 7,427 people living in Celebration. 91% are white, and the majority of the rest of the people are Hispanic/Latino. 4.1% of the city's population lives below the poverty line.

You might be asking, why did you choose Celebration? Well, for one good reason: It is the host of the annual "Great American Pie Festival" and 3/14/15 is Pi Day. One must always make pie on Pi Day, so what better place to visit? The festival is held in April, so we're a little early for it, but I think it still works.

The Food: Asparagus Quiche and Bumbleberry Pie

My first thought for dinner-related pie was the obvious: Chicken pot pie. However, I have done something quite similar to that already when I featured Vermont and I don't want to repeat myself if at all possible. So I wracked my brain a bit more and thought of quiche, another savory pie. I was able to find a recipe card that I had never tried and was quite excited about that. I also wanted to make a dessert pie and ran across another card for bumbleberry pie and thought it would be a fun one to experiment with. The quiche I followed the recipe exactly, but the bumbleberry pie I altered so much that I will just write out what I did, as opposed to writing out the original recipe with my notes. It'll be easier to read that way.

Asparagus Quiche: Courtesy of the Taste of Home Magazine, a recipe I cut out forever ago, but have never tried till now.

1lb. fresh asparagus, trimmed
1 unbaked pastry shell, 9"
3 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups milk
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese(I used reduced fat and it worked just fine)
1/4 cups dry bread crumbs(I recommend Trader Joe's brand or make your own. All the other brands from the store have corn syrup in the ingredient list and that's not what I want in my bread crumbs...But to each his/her own...)

Cut 8 asparagus spears into 4" pieces; cut remaining spears into 1/2" pieces. Cook all of the asparagus in a small amount of water until tender(I did it until it was al dente. It will continue to cook in the oven so you don't want to overcook it at this point.); drain and set aside. Line the unpricked pastry shell with a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Bake at 450 degrees for 5 minutes. Remove foil; bake 5 minutes longer.(This is known as blind-baking, where you prebake the shell for a while without the filling in it. If you ever come across this term in a pastry recipe and don't know what it means, now you know!) Remove from the oven and set aside.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter, stir in flour and salt. Gradually add milk; cook and stir until thickened.(This is called a bechamel sauce and is usually the base for macaroni and cheese, if you have ever made that from scratch before.) Stir a small amount into eggs(this is called "tempering" and it's vital to do this properly or you will scramble the eggs. Do not skip this step and make sure to whisk the eggs constantly while adding the hot bechamel sauce.); return all to the pan. Stir in cheese and 1/2" asparagus pieces. Pour into the crust.(I found it was just a bit too much for the crust and about 1/4 cup of the liquid spilled out. I allowed it to spill and just cleaned it up because I didn't want it to spill even more in the oven and burn. This turned out to be a good way to do it because it turned out just fine.)

Bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Arrange the 4" spears in a spoke pattern at the top.(As you can see from the pictures, I actually did that prior to baking and I think that worked out just fine.)
Yield: 6-8 servings

This was good hot out of the oven and I ate a piece cold for breakfast today and it was good too. I think though that room temperature would probably be ideal. This is obviously good for breakfast or brunch. Because the filling made so much that it spilled, I would not recommend adding anything else to this unless you wanted to leave out or reduce the amount of asparagus. This had no meat in it and I felt like it was just fine without it.)

Bumbleberry Pie: Source unknown, but heavily altered by me, so I will present my recipe.
1 unbaked frozen pie crust, thawed
1 cup each fresh/frozen blueberries(I used fresh), raspberries(I used frozen), blackberries(I used frozen), and sliced strawberries(I used fresh)(If you use frozen, let them sit in your bowl for a bit to begin to thaw)
1 cup fresh/frozen chopped rhubarb(I used fresh)
2 honeycrisp apples, peeled and cored, divided(One apple, dice for the pie. One apple, grate on the small holes of a box grater and make sure to collect any juice that comes out of it. Drain the majority of the juice from the shredded apple and keep these in separate containers.)
1/3 cup flour
1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Oat Crisp Topping:
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup sliced almonds, crushed(I just had this on hand. You can leave it out or use walnuts or any type of nut you want.)
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp. butter
3-4 Tbsp. apple juice from the honey crisp apple you grated

In a large bowl, combine all of the berries, the rhubarb, the diced apple, and the lemon juice and mix together. Add the shredded apple and mix well to break up the clumps of shreds. This is replacing the sugar you would normally add to a pie.

In a small bowl, combine all of the oat crisp topping ingredients and use your hands to mix the butter in. When it's well incorporated, sprinkle in the 3-4 Tbsp reserved apple juice from the shredded apple and mix in to sweeten the topping. There will be juice left over from this, so mix it into the berry mixture for the pie.

Sprinkle the flour over the berry mixture and mix well until completely incorporated. Pour the berry mixture into the pie shell. You do not need to pre-bake or poke holes in the shell. When it's filled, place the pie onto a baking sheet. You don't want to bake it without one or you'll spill everywhere and the oven will become a smoky mess. Carefully spread the oat topping over the pie filling and try to make sure it's evenly divided over the top.

Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes or until the filling is bubbly and the crust is cooked through.

I ate this while it was warm last night and it was good. The flour felt a little gummy and I was concerned that it might have been too much. I ate another piece cold this morning and it was just fine. This is definitely better chilled overnight. The diced apple is still basically raw, however. This was the only issue with the pie. If I do it again, I might saute the apple in a pan to partially cook it before adding it to the berry mixture. The flavor is amazing and you absolutely do not need added sugar to make this taste good. I really feel that I am onto something with this fruit-juice flavored desserts. I might need to develop a cookbook or something...! I would definitely enter this one in the Great American Pie Festival.

This was really easy to make. It was just chopping for the prep. You could make this gluten-free if you wanted too. All you'd need to do is prepare the fruit filling and leave out the flour. You could probably sprinkle a little cornstarch or tapioca in it and mix it together to help thicken it as it bakes. Put it in a pie tin or a baking pan and top it with the oat-crisp topping and you'd have a lovely fruit crisp that's added-sugar and gluten-free! And if you used vegan margarine instead of the butter for the topping, it would also be vegan!

My pies turned out really great last night and some day I will work on my pastry and not rely on frozen pie shells. But last night was not that day...! These were pretty simple baking projects. They'd be good for beginners who feel like they don't know what they're doing. So, if that might be you, then maybe you can try these out next year for Pi day! Happy baking!

Sources:
City Picture

Map

City Information with Pictures of the Town

Other City Information

Great American Pie Festival website